Half Marathon Thread continues .....

May I get some quick advice please? Since yesterday I've got a sore throat, bunged up and what with my 14 month old thinking 3am is a good time to play, have not had a lot of sleep.
Do I run today, or rest? I didn't run yesterday because of it, but am worried about falling behind with training.

Clara that's good advice from Mammy and Tri, hope you can get into a routine.

I'm back running after the injury but just increasing my mileage by 10% a week. Feels great though I want to do more!

Growing would doing an everyday running challenge help? They have them on run mummy run on Facebook.

Thanks! Lunch time is a possibility, we don’t have showers at work so it would be a wash at the sink in the ladies after! Before work is definitely not an option. I am the complete opposite of a morning person and I can just about get up on time to get myself and the baby sorted!

I contemplated running home from work and my husband could pick up the baby. It would take me roughly 45mins but I work 8.30-5.30 and our daughter goes to bed at 6.45 so it would mean barely seeing her which sounds pathetic but going back to work has been so hard and seeing her wee face at the end of the day gets me through it.

The only other option is to go at 7.30 when she’s in bed. I’m exhausted by then and the nights are so dark I just know I’d end up coming up with every excuse under the sun not to go.

As you say mammy, I need to settle back into work first so might stick with my one weekend run for a few weeks and then see if I can persuade anyone in work to come with me at lunch. We work near lots of great running routes so it would be good to get away from our desks!

Can you squeeze anything in at lunchtime clarabell or leave LO in childcare for an extra hour once a week or can OH collect so you can have an hour at either start or end of the day? It’s not easy when they are little and the endless bugs they bring home.
Missed my long run over the wend as we were away then woke up to feeling crap with throat thing this morn hopefully it will clear fast as I squirted that “first defence” stuff up my nose! And I’m in need of a run after a weekend full of carb loading

Hi everyone, could I join you all please?

I’ve been running for years and have done four half marathons in the past, however when I got pregnant last year I had a really horrible time and wasn’t able to run at all. My DD is now 10 months and I’m still not back to running plus I’m 2 stone overweight. The problem is I’m signed up to do the London Landmarks half in March. Is it even possible that I can think about this?

I’m absolutely shattered all the time, just gone back to work full time and by the time the baby goes to bed it’s 7.30 and I’m ready to collapse. How can I shoehorn in some training? I can manage a weekend run but can’t see how I can run through the week. I can’t train for a half on one run a week. Any advice??

C x

Thank you so much MammymammyIRL and londonmummy1966 - really good tips there.

I sometimes get a lunch break and so do a quick four miles round the park, so that will count. I'm not so good in the evenings - I tend to leave work shattered (I cycle to and from work) and so have just lost the will to exercise by then. But maybe I need to change that. I like the sound of leaving DH to feed the children - that might actually be enough to get me out there!

I like the idea of a weekly mileage plan though, although 26 miles/week sounds such a lot in terms of fitting it in! But it's definitely something to aim at. I also do yoga because it's the best way of preventing running injuries, so that takes up an hour a week as well.

Anyway thank you both so much - loads to think about in your replies.

The other thing that stresses me is the race itself - I am a solitary runner and run alone to clear my head. I get stressed if there's another runner at roughly my pace near me and have to speed up to overtake them and keep it up for a bit to make sure they don't overtake me back. Think I'm gonna have to get over that one before race day!

Thank you x

I did my longest ever run today, 10.5k. Took me an hour and a half, but its done!

I managed to get out yesterday evening and did 12.5km and probably had a bit more in the tank so I'm feeling a bit more positive.

Growingboys I prefer running in the evening - I don't know if that might work for you - sometimes I get a casserole on and leave DH to dish up supper for himself and the DC while I'm out running. I also used to have a regular very early morning run slot with a neighbour (I'd never get up under my own steam) to get a shorter faster paced run in once a week. It helped with balancing running and family life.

Hello @growingboys!

I would go down a mileage plan route with unpredictable hours/running opportunities. I had a weekly mileage target and the only fixed runs were a long run (moved from 8 miles up to 12 miles) and I tended to do a parkrun. Other than that I would just spread the week's miles over as many runs as I could fit in grabbing 30-45 minute slots over the week. The only time consuming runs were the long runs so only 1 per week which helped.

Good luck!

Can I join pls? I’ve been running for years but never more than 10k. But a charity that has helped us asked if I’d run a half for them in the spring. The Big Half.

I said yes and am now trying to build up my distance. I ran 9.6miles this morning and was quite shattered a couple of hours later, once I’d had lunch.

I’m nervous because I work full time and do the school run in the morning and so don’t get much time to run. My job is quite unpredictable so I’m not sure a training plan would work.

Anyway waffle over. Hello!

Interested to see how others get on.

Thanks for all the encouragement everyone - I'm going to walk run the HM - have been doing that previously anyway - I'm not after a time just to finish so 2.20-2.30 is going to be fine by me at my great age. I'm trying to summon up the motivation to get a 12k long run in today. We're in Cornwall next week so hopefully I'll get in some hill sessions on the cliff path to improve stamina.

It was a pool swim though - I’m not sure I could tackle a lake or sea swim at all!

purple I taught myself frontcrawl over the last year (it was on my 40s ‘bucket list’ with my DDs help (she’s in a jnr club) that was the bit I was most scared of and was one of the last out the pool at the Go-Tri but I zoomed past everyone on the bike and kept going on the run - running fitness really is great.
I’m hoping to get my kids involved in the Jnr park run when it starts here soon.

Tri I get you, running is also my "thinking" time away from family life. But for me, not every run needs to be like that and I sometimes enjoy the excitement of a "race" (parkrun is not a race )

I'm lucky as we have 4 or 5 parkruns within about 10 miles of here. I've done 3 of them, my local is about 8 miles away and is lovely and flat. Even tried out Newcastle one when visiting my sister a few weeks ago. The DC have really got into junior parkrun on a Sunday too. So maybe I'm slightly fanatical just now

I enjoy cycling too and have occasionally wondered about trying Tri. Bit scared of the swimming though!

Our nearest park run is 10miles away at the moment but a local one is being developed soon. However I’m not big fan of crowds of people and mostly run as it’s my only “quiet head” space in the whole week so not sure how much I’d enjoy a park run tbh. I’ve done a couple of events cycling, Tri and a 10k but I just got really nervous about the people not the flipping activity! I did run faster though

TriGirl have you tried doing a parkrun? I find that gives me the extra motivation to run that wee bit faster

My next planned Half is in March. Though my friend is trying to persuade me to sign up for a Marathon in April. Not convinced I'm ready, maybe next year. On my bucket list for before I'm 50, still got 4 years!

Been working on my speed, parkrun and shorter, faster runs. Feeling a bit stronger with my 10k next Sunday.

Loudest Sounds like you are building up gradually, which is the way to go. Are you following a training plan?

London I was injured over the summer, so am familiar with the return to running where every run is unpleasant. Stick with it and you'll get there

Knowing you could do it before londonmum is half the battle mentally hopefully in a few weeks your stamina will return. I’ve had long periods off in the past with injuries and it’s crap when you need that “fix”

Got a PB on my 5k tonight SO close to getting a sub-30min but not quite arhhh 15secs over! I’m trying to get there by xmas. I’ve only been running a year and I’m a complete curvy short arse so not got long legs or built for speed!

Hello can I join you guys. I've just been allowed back to running after 4 months off and I need some support to get me through the grumpy period where every run hurts and I'm fed up because 10k seems impossible.

I've signed up for Hampton Court on 18 March stille is that the one you're doing or are you doing the rival one? I'm hoping some friends will do it too but I have no one to train with so could do with some support/people to chase me to get out there and run.

loudestroar my SIL trained for London marathon this year mostly on a treadmill in her house by covering up the display & just watching TV whilst she ran!

Just been out for a 5k speed intervals session

Pink I'm running a HM on 26 Nov. I'll be doing the run/walk 4/1 programme, i.e. Run four minutes and walk one. I am doing a 13-week programme and it's been fine, except for a calf muscle spasming. The physio has been sorting me out. I've got four and a half weeks to go and so far my longest run is eight miles. The calf has meant I've had to switch to doing my long runs on a combination of elliptical and bike along with treadmill and soft surfaces such as the park.

I'm hoping that if I can stop the leg from spawning again in the meantime I will be able to make it on the say. Fortunately the HM is in a park, with trails.

My first ever 5k on a treadmill tonight. Quite a lot of ny training will need to be done on one of these, so any tips to make it more interesting greatly appreciated!